


Whiskers and Kisses

by MotherBooker



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Draco as a rabbit, Fluff, HP Fluff Fest 2020, Hogwarts Eighth Year, M/M, Pre-Relationship, spell gone wrong
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-21
Updated: 2020-09-21
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:28:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,552
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26084209
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MotherBooker/pseuds/MotherBooker
Summary: When rabbits trust and care about a person, they can be very loving and affectionate creatures
Relationships: Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter
Comments: 7
Kudos: 192
Collections: HP Fluff Fest 2020





	Whiskers and Kisses

**Author's Note:**

> This was inspired by my own rabbit, who is the most affectionate little bunny I've ever met. He has a habit of cuddling into my chest when he's scared and my vet has always said this because he is comforted by my heartbeat, which I find adorable, and is the inspiration for this fic. 
> 
> Thank you to GwynWrach for beta-ing!

Harry threw his bag down on the floor and flopped onto the bed with a heavy sigh. 

They were just two months away from NEWT exams and the teachers seemed to have decided that they needed to spend every waking moment writing essays or poring over textbooks. He’d barely had a moment to himself to breathe.

He couldn’t wait to get into his pajamas and watch people on the Marauder's Map until he fell asleep. Hermione would probably complain about him missing out on precious revision time, but he was just so _tired_.

There was rustling on the bed next to him then a little nose pressed against his arm, reminding him why these past few weeks had been particularly bad. He lifted his arm up and a small, fluffy grey rabbit hopped onto his stomach. The rabbit snuggled down onto his chest, tucking his paws underneath his body and making a content clicking noise with his teeth. Harry smiled and gently scratched between his ears. 

About two weeks ago, Draco had a run in with a group of fifth years working on a transfiguration project in the library. They were attempting to turn shoelaces into rabbits and guinea pigs with little success, when one of them thought it would be amusing to try the same spell on Draco. One poorly pronounced incantation later and Harry’s roommate was much smaller and much furrier. 

Despite McGonagall’s best efforts, she had been unable to return him to his normal state because the spell had been so inexpertly cast and hadn’t responded to the usual reversal spells. She’d eventually made the decision to wait until the spell wore off itself, which she guessed would take anywhere from five days to a month.

Draco usually spent most of the evening asleep on Harry’s chest, just above his heart, while Harry read through his notes and textbooks. His weight was warm and comforting and it had quickly become Harry’s favourite part of the day, but he was beginning to miss human-Draco. He missed their conversations and playful bickering. He missed having breakfast with Draco in the kitchens in the early hours of the morning before they snuck off to the quidditch pitch. Harry hadn’t realised just how much Draco had come to mean to him until now.

While they were close now, their first few weeks as roommates had been spent hexing each other and arguing about how messy the room was, much to McGonagall’s displeasure. She’d paired them up for every group project in Transfiguration until she no longer had to stop them cursing each other in the corridors. Somewhere between turning each other’s hair pink and falling asleep over their textbooks every weekend they’d developed a tentative friendship. 

They’d become inseparable in the weeks before Draco’s accident. Hermione had gone into full study mode right after Christmas and Ron, being the loving boyfriend he was, was right by her side. Harry couldn’t bear sitting in the library for hours on end listening to Hermione mumbling about goblin wars, despite Hermione insisting that he needed to focus on his grades more. Instead, he’d persuaded Draco to pick up his broom again and they spent their evenings chasing snitches and throwing quaffles around. 

It created quite a bit of tension between Harry and his friends. Hermione didn’t like how little Harry cared about school work and didn’t trust Draco, while Ron was angry with him for upsetting Hermione. They spent weeks bickering quietly about Harry’s work and poorly completed essays until Hermione snapped and shouted at him in the common room one evening. The argument was the talk of the school for days. It took Draco sitting the pair of them down in an empty classroom and locking the door on them for Harry to make up with her. They’d had a long conversation about school before they eventually came to an agreement about Harry spending one night a week with them in the library and Hermione leaving him alone about his homework.

Something had changed between him and Draco after that. Draco had risked his time with Harry by fixing his friendship with Hermione. He had no way of knowing if Harry would bother with him once he had his friends back, but he did it anyway and Harry respected him for that. 

Harry couldn’t quite pinpoint the moment their friendship became more than platonic. They studied more together, stayed up late talking about the war and their families, and on several occasions, fell asleep in front of the fire in the common room together. They started comforting each other more after nightmares and most nights ended with them sharing a bed.

Harry hadn’t said anything about their relationship out of fear that Draco didn’t feel the same. If Draco rejected him, he’d lose the quiet moments they spent together when they were alone, curled up under the blanket Molly had knitted for him, whispering about everything from their plans for the future to gossip about the teachers. He just couldn’t bring himself to take that risk.

Now though, looking down at Draco curled up on his chest, with no idea when he’d be able to have a proper conversation with him again, he wished he hadn’t been so afraid to tell him how he felt. 

Draco shifted, his furry little nose twitching, and sat up. He kicked his front paws out like a tiny, fluffy boxer and started cleaning his face, pulling his ears down to lick them. Over the last two weeks Harry had learnt that a rabbit cleaning itself was the cutest thing on Earth. Watching Draco lick his adorable little paws and wash his face warmed Harry’s heart, and reminded him that there was still a piece of Draco inside the bunny Harry had been caring for. Even as a rabbit, Draco couldn’t bear to look anything less than perfect. 

Draco settled down on Harry’s chest again and closed his eyes, clicking his teeth contentedly as Harry scratched between his ears. 

Resigned to the fact that he wasn’t going to be moving from this position for the rest of the evening unless he wanted to disturb Draco and deal with a very grumpy rabbit, Harry grabbed the book from his nightstand. 

It was a book about caring for rabbits Hermione had given to him after Draco’s accident. He’d read the first and most important pages about diet and exercise straight away to make sure he was looking after Draco correctly, but he’d not looked at it since. He opened it up at the next chapter. 

_Displays of affection _

_When rabbits trust and care about a person, they can be very loving and affectionate creatures, and they show this in various ways._

_Many rabbits will nuzzle and lick you, in a similar way to how they would groom a rabbit that they are bonded to. For rabbits, grooming is a way to socialise and show affection to each other, and by doing it to you, they are showing you that they care for you and trust you. When a rabbit nuzzles or licks you, you should return the affection by stroking and petting them to show that you care too, and to encourage them to continue to be affectionate._

_Rabbits are prey animals and are naturally wary of humans, so relaxing around you by lying down or sleeping is a huge display of love and trust. They are showing you that they don't feel threatened and are completely comfortable with you. If your rabbit is particularly affectionate, they may sit or lie on your lap to seek comfort from you, especially in a situation where they feel threatened or scared by something._

_For example, some rabbits will climb into the arms of their owner when at the vets because they feel scared and threatened by the new environment and new people. This shows that they feel comforted by you and your presence. There is also evidence to suggest that rabbits feel comforted and safe when they can feel their owner’s heart, which is another reason why they may climb into your arms when they feel scared._

Harry paused and looked down at Draco. Every night since his accident he’d climbed onto the bed and sat in Harry’s lap, then fallen asleep on his chest. When Harry stroked him he’d rub his face against him and lick his fingers. According to the book, this meant Draco trusted him completely and cared greatly for him, even though his instincts as a rabbit made him very wary of humans. 

Now that he thought about it, Draco’s affection seemed to be reserved only for Harry. On the few occasions where Hermione and Ron had visited their dorm, Draco had been skittish and shied away from being pet by them. He spent most of those visits curled up in Harry’s lap or in his arms, resting against Harry’s chest, head by his heart. 

“I guess my feelings aren’t quite as one-sided as I thought.” Harry said, leaning forward to kiss his forehead, smiling when Draco lifted his head up and licked his chin in return. 

Harry couldn’t be certain when Draco would be back to his usual, less furry self, but he knew that when he was, Harry wouldn’t hesitate to show Draco just how much he cared. 

**Author's Note:**

> 🌻 This work is part of Fluff Fest, a Harry Potter-centered fest dedicated to fluffy themes, meet cutes and wholesome vibes.
> 
> If you’ve enjoyed this work, please show love and support to our precious content creators by leaving kudos and comments! 💌
> 
> [Feel free to check out the fest's tumblr for more updates. ](https://hpfluff-fest.tumblr.com/)


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